


see what I see

by doofusface



Series: press play, hit rewind [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gen, Identity Reveal, Minor whump, Mutual Pining, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Teen Romance, Texting, Timelines, it’s 7.1k words of figuring out Things and also texting ned and liz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-20
Updated: 2018-03-20
Packaged: 2019-04-04 22:23:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14030115
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doofusface/pseuds/doofusface
Summary: Michelle watches them with increasing curiosity, astounded by how fast they managed to stick together like glue.She wonders if she’ll find people to stick to like that, but doesn’t really mind sticking to books and drawings for the time being.--A winding timeline of events, from freshman year at Midtown Tech and onwards, from the eyes of one Michelle "MJ" Jones.





	see what I see

**Author's Note:**

> "lissi! we thought you'd abandoned us for another fandom!" said no one, but I like to pretend. 
> 
> anyway yeah I didn't post anything for a few days because I was writing this monstrosity. I hope it's fine?? ill probs change the summary a few times cuz im not happy about it ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ 
> 
> very very loosely used vanessa carlton's ordinary day as mood music
> 
> title from the same song, eyooo

Peter Parker is, undeniably, a golden retriever.

Michelle permanently associates him with the animal the second they meet in freshman year for Decathlon tryouts, and it just. Sticks.

She has decided she likes his company, as well as the boy with the unbridled enthusiasm for...everything— _Ned_ , she caught him say—and is pleasantly surprised to find them becoming fast friends. She makes a home in the table next to theirs in the cafeteria, bar the Decathlon team sitting together.

They both talk loud, have open faces, and are who she considers would probably go under Santa’s _Nice_ list, if the ol’ jolly man were real.

Michelle watches them with increasing curiosity, astounded by how fast they managed to stick together like glue.

She wonders if she’ll find people to stick to like that, but doesn’t really mind sticking to books and drawings for the time being.

* * *

She has History with Ned, and Chemistry with Peter—if the universe is sending a sign, she’s ignoring it. Ned asks if she wants to partner up for an assignment and she says yes because at least she knows the guy.

That’s how it starts.

The texts. The memes. Ned Leeds is friendly enough to ensure you felt safe about being considered his friend, and not clingy enough for you to want to _stop_ being his friend.

Michelle learns quickly that Ned will keep his mouth shut about the things that matter, the things that are _personal_. She finds this out because she feeds him false information ( _My family moved here illegally_ ) as a test and doesn’t rat her out to even Peter. When she deems him worthy of being a step above an acquaintance, she starts initiating the chats in the hallway and through text.

Peter gets her number for a group project, and they end up being the only two to do it because their groupmates hate Chemistry and anything to do with it. They’re the _Math_ side of Midtown, and she consents to exchanging addresses for ease.

Somewhere along the way, Ned ends up helping them with the assignment, and serves as a bridge from her to Peter—and, well, that’s how she starts picking on _him_ , too.

* * *

Liz is on Peter’s brain 24/7, which is usually not so bad, except now he’s falling _way_ into the deep end, and she takes it upon herself to call him out on staring like a creep.

It’s her duty as a responsible citizen to keep him from becoming a Bad Person, unlike Ned, who is too busy hyping up his friend to realize he, too, is being weird.

* * *

Something is wrong with Peter. He throws up on the field trip at the start of sophomore year and Michelle finds herself stuck helping Ned haul his shaking, wiry frame to the infirmary on site. He’s fine a few minutes later, but she learns from Ned the next day that Peter’s got a high fever at home and is absent for the first time since she’s known him.

He shows up a week later, hiding muscles she _knows_ didn’t exist before under too-large sweaters from—she assumes—dumpster dives. They don’t look anywhere near his Nerd-Prep style, but another week later and _those_ clothes are gone, replaced by larger versions of his old science joke graphic tees and sweater-over-plaid ensembles.

She hasn’t figured out _why_ he got sick yet, and it makes even less sense that he gets _buff_ from it, but she tells no soul and lets Ned go on his excited riffs about Peter’s step closer to coolness.

* * *

Michelle’s wondering how all these kids in AcaDec are supposed to be, like, hyper-intellectuals, and yet somehow haven’t noticed that Peter’s sudden buffness should be _suspect_.

Liz makes a passing comment on it when it’s just the girls at lunch, and Michelle thinks, _Finally, someone sensible_ , except it ends with someone saying he’s _probably been toned forever_ , and he _just wears big sweaters_.

She dives deeper into her book on Van Gogh’s questionable death.

* * *

Peter misses school again.

Michelle finds out from a direct source—Ned, obviously—that his uncle Ben got mugged and murdered the night before.

She finds out Peter’s an orphan, and has been for a while.

She leaves him a voicemail that just tells him there’s homework and a good book on managing emotions waiting for him in his locker.

When he comes back to school she bothers him extra, and Ned tells her that’s the first time he’s smiled in more than a week.

* * *

There’s a video showing this guy in a hoodie and...swimming goggles? Modified swimming goggles. He stops a car from crashing into a bus, and swings—yes, _swings_ —from building to building, like some red ant version of Tarzan, except with the opposite amount of clothing.

Michelle thinks he looks like a bug.

* * *

Someone posts about the Swinging Red Guy’s silvery-white “rope” actually being webbing. There’s a picture of a burglar strapped to the lamp post outside the house he was attempting to loot, and _yep_. That’s webbing.

The tabloids go crazy, and Michelle has a name to refer to now.

Spider-Man.

* * *

Peter comes to school one day and keeps blocking people from his left side by strategically always having his left arm down. Michelle notices because Ned keeps trying to give him a hug from that side, and Peter keeps managing to dodge and weave around without the other boy noticing he’s switched sides.

She’s probably paranoid, but there’s something not right about that kind of behavior.

She tries to nudge the spot with her elbow when he’s not looking, and, surprise of surprises, he _catches her elbow_.

“Oh, s-sorry, Michelle,” he says, as if he didn’t realize he did it.

She nods instead of responding.

Peter Parker does _not_ have good reflexes.

And he certainly doesn’t have eyes at the back of his head.

* * *

If Peter genuinely thinks that just because the lab’s got like, eight Bunsen burners running and at _least_ thirteen fizzling substances coalescing into a beautiful symphony she likes to call _Safety Hazard_ , that suddenly means she, being _three feet away_ , can’t hear his noisy-ass mixing, then Michelle has acquaintanced an idiot.

She can barely see what it is from her vantage, but it looks familiar, and she knows he’s not making anything for extra credit.

* * *

Peter quits Robotics. Michelle doesn’t say anything about it, but she knows because Ned’s complaining about it at lunch, _again_. They were supposed to have a competition-winning team-up this year. Youngest to win, being sophomores.

Peter keeps apologizing, but she can think of a few good reasons why he’s suddenly flaking on everything he used to love.

* * *

They win Regionals.

Liz leads the pack like a _boss_ , and Michelle is grateful to be at least cordial with the senior—she’s cool, _and_ smart.

Probably her only flaw is thinking Peter’s a regular flake and not a super, humongous, shy-faced liar.

Michelle listens to all the sounds in the bus on their way back to Midtown Tech.

For once, she lets herself enjoy everyone’s company.

* * *

Spider-Man gets a new suit the week the Sokovia Accords come out.

Michelle watches over the slow, agonizing weeks leading up to Nationals as Peter drops off the face of the earth more times than she can count.

He doesn’t even show up to study group in the library.

It was _his_ idea, and he just leaves them hanging, week after week.

(Let it be noted that there were times only _she_ showed up, too, because it was habit before the field trip for them to study together, and now…)

He keeps talking about the “Stark Internship” and she feels a little insulted that he thinks that’s a good excuse to ditch your team when you _know_ you’re the best at Physics in the entire group.

* * *

He quits marching band.

Could he _be_ any more obvious?

* * *

Ned’s been texting her more and more the last few weeks, and she kinda feels bad for him.

He tells her Peter’s been super busy with his internship, completely unprompted. She lets him rant about his days and they chat about class and Flash being stupid.

And sometimes, when he sends her a meme, she sends one back.

If Michelle had friends, Ned would be at the top of the list.

* * *

She’s found a new hobby. Detention.

Not being _in_ it, per se, but the surplus of crisis-filled students in there is just, _inspiration_ , y’know? Plus, the Coach is always sulky. It’s great. A new face for every day of detention.

Not like she’s got anyone forcing her to come home early.

* * *

Betty’s going around getting interviews from the student body for another _Under the Mask_ segment.

“I have my suspicions,” Michelle says.

Peter avoids talking to her directly unless he _has_ to. For a week.

They are no longer suspicions.

* * *

Ned hangs around her at lunch when Peter’s off doing “stuff” in the lab instead of eating.

She wants to tell Ned about the leftover webbing she’d found in Peter’s cabinet, just to ease his pain, but that’s not fair to Peter.

She hates it, really, because she knows the superhero’s doing the secret identity thing _wrong_ , but he’s definitely got a point to keep it a secret.

Again, safety hazard.

* * *

There it is.

Peter’s gone and given up his seat for Nationals.

She saw it coming ages ago.

Liz gets extra stress thrown on her shoulders because Flash is _in_ , and that’s not good news for _anybody_.

Michelle’s close to hating Peter’s guts. He’s managed to single-handedly destroy the _one_ club she cared about, _and_ cause trouble for the girl he’s supposedly head-over-heels in love with.

She calls him a loser more often. It’s true. He’s losing track of priorities.

A teen hero is still a teen.

He needs an anchor.

* * *

Ned knows.

Ned looks _guilty_ and _excited_ , and she’s sure he knows.

Michelle’s also sure Peter didn’t tell him, because he keeps trying to shush Ned when they talk during class, during gym, during practice.

She bench presses _Of Human Bondage_ instead of doing sit-ups and overhears Ned try to convince Liz that Peter knows Spider-Man.

 _Well duh,_ she thinks. _It would be concerning if he didn’t know who he was_.

She’s still wondering how no one overheard them whispering about Peter stealing Captain America’s shield during the PSA video.

Of all the times to catch them saying something stupid, the quiet, echoing gym during an outdated PSA was _prime_ , and yet.

And. Yet.

* * *

Liz’s party is pretty _eh_ since Michelle couldn’t catch anyone breaking anything. Then there’s Flash doing as Flash does.

Peter’s there for two minutes then disappears and leaves Ned.

Michelle watches on the fringes, eating from the pack of toast and spread Liz had handed her the second she stepped in—thoughtful, that one—and waits to see if Peter actually does try to pull an  _I’m Spider-Man and I’m Peter’s friend!_ stunt, but he doesn’t.

At least the peanut butter was quality.

* * *

There’s more alien tech stuff in the news, but Peter’s still alive and he hasn’t gotten any big bruises like that one time from after his weekend abroad during the Accords thing, where she saw him walking on the street and he had a _huge_ black eye.

 _He’s fine_ , she thinks, continuing her homework.

 _He’ll be fine_.

* * *

Peter wiggles his way into the Nationals trip last minute.

Like, literally _last_ minute.

He’s up to something, and when he asks about the cleanup building on the bus, she’s all too happy to confer some information that may or may not be vital to his sudden decision to rejoin the team.

* * *

Michelle’s glad she’s stopped expecting anything from Peter, because when they leave the hotel in the morning for the competition, he’s _missing_.

(They win. _She_ wins it, which feels super amazing, and Ned initiates a group hug that she can’t fight back a smile from.)

* * *

So, the Washington Monument sucks because slavery, but really, it blowing up while people she knew (her friends—yes, _friends_ , she can admit that now) were upstairs? Uncalled for.

Spider-Man shows up beside her a second later, and she surprises herself by yelling, “My friends are up there!”

And then, y’know, is surprised by _Peter’s normal voice_ going, “ _OH_ , uh, don’t worry ma’am! Everything’s gonna be okay!”

What, did the Avengers get _budget cuts_? Was Tony Stark going bankrupt?

He couldn’t have at least given the guy a freakin’ _voice modulator_?

...But Peter’s gone before she can say anything about him sounding “prepubescent for a ‘man’,” climbing with an agility she’s only seen when he doubled back after gym to climb the rope when he thought no one was around.

* * *

Ned asks her to Homecoming via text, which is comforting and super platonic, so she says yes.

It goes like this:

_can u go with me to homecoming?? pls_

_why?_

_ur the only girl im friends with_

_fair. k_

_Nice™️_

And then he’s back to sending her memes.

* * *

Peter’s got detention for forever and Michelle realizes she hasn’t seen him this consistently in _months_.

Unfortunately for him, he’s the only regular in the dry season of rebellion, so her sketchbook is pretty much him, him, and more of him.

Michelle gets _really_ good at drawing him shorthand, and by the time Homecoming rolls around, she’s snuck several cartoon-Peter’s into his locker, all with impossibly frowny faces.

Ned gets copies. Because Ned’s cool, and not a flake.

There have been no Spider-Man sightings since the ferry incident.

* * *

Ned’s like, the best possible date, honestly. He wears a hat and brings her a corsage, and completely dispels the notion of Filipino time by being early enough to have photos taken with her family and his mom, who drops them off. Sweetest little Asian lady, really.

They hang out with most of the outcasts of AcaDec, claiming one chunk of the dancefloor for themselves like the territorial geeks they are.

And then: Liz arrives. Okay. Normal.

But: Peter arrives. Surprising, yeah, but still normal.

Until: Peter gives Liz this _look_ , and sure Michelle’s too far to hear over the music, but Peter’s gone and run off again, and Liz is getting a heckuvalot of pity looks.

The team (sans Flash) reverts to its true form of Overprotective Student Body Outliers, and proceed to dance on over to Liz because you know what? They’ve all been bit by Peter lately, and they’re all gonna have a great time at Homecoming anyway.

Michelle nudges Liz. “Good job with the decorations.”

Liz smiles weakly. “Thanks.”

* * *

Liz is leaving.

It’s the middle of the school year.

Her father’s in jail for...several things, including illegal weapon smuggling.

Spider-Man put him there.

Last night. During Homecoming.

She watches Peter deflate in the middle of the hallway.

She watches Ned, too, and concludes he doesn’t know what exactly happened last night, which does not bode well—Peter’s been open to using him as a sounding board, and if he’s not talking about what happened with Mr. Toomes, then something worse than just a bad guy brawl took place last night.

* * *

Huh.

She’s team captain.

Weird.

* * *

“My—my friends call me ‘MJ’.”

 _Why would you tell anyone?_ she yells to herself, but Ned’s the first one to pick up on it:

“I thought you didn’t have any friends?”

“I... _didn’t_.”

She has mentally upgraded Ned to ‘Friend’. Good for him.

(Peter leaves and she messes with him enough to get him to do the _I’m Caught, Don’t Get Mad!_ face, but she’s not evil enough to make him admit he’s Spider-Man in front of their team.

When he leaves, she allows herself to watch him go.)

* * *

Sometimes she brings up Spider-Man to Ned to test the waters, and when Peter inevitably walks in on the conversation at lunch, he tells her he hasn’t seen the web-slinger in a while.

“What, he’s on break?” she asks.

“Nah, but you were right about the internship thing,” he says, smiling. “I asked for less hours.”

 _Ah_ , she thinks. _Finally._

* * *

Summer takes over their lives, and Ned flies out with his family to Hawaii for a reunion, leaving Michelle— _MJ_ , now—basically stuck with Peter.

For a month.

It’s agony on her end because whenever they hang out and some level of crime happens nearby, Peter gets into this exaggerated fight or flight or _fight_ mode and keeps trying to come up with excuses to get away from her so he can save the day. Not that she _minds_ him saving the day, but his excuses are _so bad_ that it makes her pity him enough to just shove him into an alley and sternly tell him to change and “do the _thwip-thwip_ thing” before the glorified litter box destroys her favorite bookstore.

* * *

She gets her first official invite to movie night via Ned after he gets back from his trip.

She could hear Peter in the back, dictating what to say, and it’s…nice.

“ _I don’t get why_ you _don’t just ask her—_ “

“ _She thinks I’m the world’s worst ditcher! Just ask if she wants to come over, Ned, please?_ ”

 _No, but you are the world’s dumbest caller_ , she thinks.

“ _Fine, but you owe me—Hey, MJ?_ ”

“Yeah, loser?”

“ _Peter’s asking if—OW—uh, I was wondering if you wanted to hang out for movie night? At Peter’s—OW, okay,_ geez _—at Peter’s,_ or _my place.You can say no_.”

She doesn’t say no.

* * *

It’s nice to find like-minded people willing to read her books, so she gives in and watches _Star Wars_ with them as a prize.

Except she doesn’t tell them she’s already seen it.

Thrice.

All the way through.

Plus the cartoons.

It’s for her benefit, really, but it brings joy to her boys’ faces (yes, she said it), so she hides the secret for a week and a half and laughs at their jaw-dropped faces when they find out.

* * *

She confuses Peter to no end because half the time she pretends he isn’t Spider-Man, and the other half she pokes fun at him for a stunt caught on video.

It’s very fulfilling to see him on-guard about it, really. She thinks it’s cute, like when puppies can’t tell if they’re _really_ allowed to take the thing, or if their owner’s about to pull it away at the last second.

Heh.

Still a golden retriever.

* * *

You know what’s really wild about taking over captainship as a sophomore? Everyone from the other teams becomes scared of you. They think you probably wrecked a senior in an intellectual version of a gladiator fight and “took the throne”, or whatever.

The Stuyvesant kids are especially intimidated, for some reason, but it could also be because they saw her drilling her team in the hotel lobby for warmups before the meet. Midtown Tech is full-party and on its A-game, thank you very much.

Stuy’s fault for watching, really.

Junior-Michelle came to kick butt.

* * *

Winning Regionals puts them on a high, and it’s helped by the fact that Peter hasn’t missed Decathlon practice since after her being named captain.

Michelle decides he can be put off probation, to which he replies, “ _I WAS ON PROBATION?_ ”

She shrugs. “Duh.”

* * *

On a nice, sunny Monday, Peter shows up with a barely-noticeable swollen lip, but she catches it. She will always catch it.

Michelle decides it’s time to free him from his misery.

She leaves him a note that says _Get better at not getting beat up_ and a pack of basic makeup.

He finds her alone after Decathlon and says, “Um, thanks.”

She says, “Don’t mention it.”

So he doesn’t, but he gives her a hug that says _I’m glad you know_. _I’m also glad you’ve stopped messing with me because that was giving me serious headaches_.

* * *

Ned doesn’t know she knows.

He still tries to excuse Peter on his behalf for leaving during movie night at his own apartment.

She lets him. Why not, right?

* * *

May figures out she knows because she sees Michelle sneak another pack of concealer into Peter’s secret “Spider-Man Stuff” drawer.

May buys her dinner and they have a good talk about the problems with teenage boys who have hero complexes.

The next week, Ned finds out that she found out and joins them, and it turns into a little therapy group for the _Civilian Support Unit of Peter Parker’s Alter-Ego_.

* * *

Peter’s been sending her memes lately. And emojis.

 _So many_ emojis.

“What are you hiding, Peter?” she whispers into his ear between periods, and he honest to goodness _jumps_.

He turns to face her, but his eyes stare directly ahead at Ned. “N-nothing. Nothing.”

She stares him down. “ _Lie_.”

“It’s—it’s not, um, important,” he coughs, maneuvering away from her. His voice is soft.

 _Disappointed_.

Ned just gives her his _Sad Dad_ shrug, and she lets it go.

* * *

Michelle’s on the top bunk sketching, claiming the kingdom that is Peter’s room for herself. Ned’s snoozing on the floor because beds are for normal people, and Peter’s getting a blanket and tucking it around his friend.

She laughs softly, careful not to wake Ned. “You are what the French would call, _gentil_.”

“You know French?” Peter whispers, crawling up to the ceiling to avoid talking over their napping friend.

She snorts. “Naw, I took Italian. I just know that word, and _ouais—_ the basics.”

He moves closer, perching on the beds’ railing. “Why _that_ word?”

 _Because it describes you perfectly_ , she wants to say, as his eyes bore into her soul.

“It was cool,” she says instead, eyes switching back down to her growing sketch. “‘ _Gentil_ ’—it’s deep, not just ‘gentle’. Not just ‘nice’.”

Peter nods.

“You don’t get it.”

He shakes his head.

She makes a pass at his hair, ruffling it. She doesn’t really know what she’s doing. “Loser.”

Peter smiles. “Yeah.”

Is he...moving closer?

Must be the lighting, right? There’s no way he’s about to—

Ned _snores_.

“You—uh, you better turn him over,” she says breathlessly.

Peter nods, swallowing. “Yeah.”

* * *

He _was_ moving closer.

Well.

Okay.

* * *

_did u guys make out while i was sleepin_

_no????_

_lame_

* * *

Ned plops down onto his seat beside her at lunch. Peter’s out today with the “flu” (under-the-radar Avengers emergency call) so it’s just the two of them today.

Ned looks like Count Dracula paid him a visit, waited for him to recover, then went back for seconds.

“I hate Biology.”

“The fro—”

“Don’t,” he says. “Do not. Finish. That sentence.” Ned drops his head, and Michelle immediately moves his tray out of the way. His face makes contact with table instead of...whatever the heck they were serving today. “I can’t. I can’t do this. Why is America this way.”

“Why do you think I’m a vegetarian?” she quips, downing a mouthful of a packed sandwich.

He groans. “Can I have a bite?”

“I said I was vegetarian, not a philanthropist.”

(She gives him half a sandwich and a sip of her tea.)

* * *

May asks her if Peter’s grades are actually still up, and not if he’s just fibbing. She tells her, “Yeah, and he’s been going to practice. Except Tuesday, I think he had to go fight that big guy in Brooklyn on Tuesday.”

May hums.

Michelle’s been hearing that _hum_ a lot, lately.

The _same_ kind of hum.

The one Mr. Harrington gives her when she tells him Peter’s volunteering to bring the snacks for the Nationals trip.

The one Cindy gives her when she has to decline an offer to get tea at a new cafe, because it’s _movie night at Pete’s, can’t today_.

The one Liz _texts_ her after Michelle adds a video to her story that is entirely composed of Peter trying to sing karaoke with Ned during the latter’s birthday.

 _what_ , she texts back.

_Nothing._

_liar_

_Whose birthday is it?_

_Ned’s. it’s on the vid_

_Could’ve fooled me ;)_

* * *

Guess who gets chucked into the Empire State Building over winter break?

Not Michelle!

 _Definitely_ Peter!

Ned really shouldn’t be laughing as hard as he is, but she’s gotta say, the slow- _squeak_ Peter—oops, _Spider-Man—_ eked out when he hit the art deco was _funny_.

There’s a meme of it all over the internet, and Michelle—awesome, responsible Michelle—deftly constructs a banner for use in future protests using said meme.

And perhaps hangs another version of it on the school bus as they travel to Nationals.

Ned 100% helped her get the best quality possible of the wonked-out Spidey-face from the video, and Peter 100% loudly contests its usage on public property.

* * *

Peter sends her a video of T’Challa greeting her happy birthday and she thinks she’s in love.

...With Peter.

“I _know_ ,” she tells Ned. “It’s _weirding_ me out, too.”

“Oh, _I_ don’t think it’s _weird_ ,” he replies, laughter washing the surprise off his face. “I just thought you’d like, bottle it up for maybe another month or two.”

“That bad?”

Ned nods. “That bad.”

Michelle does that _stank face_ celebrity judges do on singing competitions, and curses the ground Peter Parker walks on. How dare he make her feel things above and beyond friendship.

(Except not really, because she walks on pretty much the same ground, and plus, like, out of commission Spider-Man is not fun for anybody.)

(She settles for assigning all the hardest questions at practice to Peter as revenge.)

* * *

They’re in her room. She leaves for _two seconds_ and somehow they’re already arguing.

Boys. Terrible.

Except she remembers it’s Ned and Peter, and they don’t argue unless it’s over something one of them should/shouldn’t be doing.

(Or _Star Wars_ , but they already covered that one tonight, so.)

She’s aware of Peter’s heightened hearing, and curses the old hardwood floors for being unforgiving in her quest to stealth herself upstairs.

Maybe when they’re at school where there are fifty-and-then-some other sounds to hide herself in.

She’ll catch them then.

* * *

Update: Abe is the greatest human being on this earth, and has been upgraded from Tier 2 Acquaintance to Tier 1 Teammate.

Her boys have been arguing about prom.

Sufficient information.

Curiosity satiated.

* * *

…She’s a liar and needs to know _why_ they’ve been arguing about prom.

* * *

“ _Give me one good reason!_ ”

“ _She’s my only like, real friend, who is a girl!_ ”

“ _That’s_ my _reason!_ ”

“ _She’s—Ned, c’mon!_ ”

Thank you, Stark Industries, for your lovely baby spider drones, and your incredibly accommodating AI’s.

It’s really Peter’s own fault, letting her have a look at the suit while he and Ned retreat back into his room to “find batteries for the clock”.

‘Cause like, she knows the supply cabinet in this apartment. It’s in May’s room. Michelle asked her for batteries when she came in two minutes ago, and now she’s staring at the object they’re supposedly looking for, listening in on her friends through the Spider-Man mask.

(Sidenote: The mask is surprisingly breathable? She’s sure her hair’s gonna be _floof_ the second she removes it, but _wow_ , HQ indeed.)

“ _Say it, Pete_ ,” Ned coaxes, and she imagines him doing that life coach pose he’s been practicing lately. “ _You can do it_.”

“ _She’s—wait. Is that—_ ”

Oh, frickin’—

 _Caught_.

Abort mission.

 _ABORT MISSION_.

* * *

“Nice hair, MJ,” Peter says coolly, stepping out of his room. He’s got an inquisitive look on his face, and if he’s trying to make her feel guilty, it, oddly enough, works.

“Thanks, nimrod. Trying out a new style.” Her hair is a _mess_. The mask is somewhere by the TV, discarded in the least cool way possible.

And Dron-E? The traitor lands on the suit, right there on her lap, as if it did nothing wrong.

Michelle keeps her face neutral. “So. Batteries.” She uses her foot to slide the box over to Peter, who has moved from behind the couch to its front.

_Check._

Peter squints harder.

She raises her head defiantly.

He hesitates, then takes the batteries.

_And mate._

* * *

_how much did u hear?_

_dunno. how much did you say?_

_hmmmmmmmmm_

_is that a normal ‘hmmmmm’ or the humming everyone keeps doing?_

_hum_

_I hate you_

* * *

They watch Cindy turn down the senior football player in what is arguably the most impressive display of a nerd burn. Michelle feels extremely proud to be her team captain.

She nudges Ned. “Dude, so we’re going to prom or what?”

And you know that face kids make when they _really_ wanna share a secret, but they’re pretty sure they’ll be under penalty of death—or worse, _cancelled video game privileges—_ so they just kinda. Sit there. And. Sweat?

Ned’s doing that.

“Um, Ned?”

“ _Sorry_ ,gottago _Igotta_ go _go_ andgo, _going_.”

 _Boy’s been doing his cardio_ , she thinks, watching him sprint down the hall. _The hell is the world coming to?_

* * *

She waits for them after school, leaning on the stair railings.

Ned’s pushing Peter towards her. Not the nice way, either.

Peter hisses after he trips on a step. “Okay, _fine_ , just—”

“No ‘ _just_ ’s, only ‘ _do_ ’s!”

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I have exceptional hearing,” Michelle blanks, turning a page.

“Of c—yup, you do—yeah, _haha_ , caught us. Nice.” Peter taps his side with a closed fist. “Wassuuup, MJ?”

She stares at him. Does he have two heads now? He might. And they can’t seem to agree about what they’re doing right now. “The enigmatic works of Chopin.”

“...You’re reading sheet music?”

“I’m _learning_ to read sheet music.”

“Huh,” he says, and if she didn’t know any better she’d swear that was the sound of a lovelorn teenager.

But... _nah_ , right?

Ned shoves him again.

“Um, right,” Peter stumbles, suddenly only a foot away. “So.”

She quirks a brow. “So?”

“Did. Do. Date.”

“Peter, I know English is a weird-ass language, but you’re more fluent than that.”

“Do you haveadatetoprom? Ifnotdoyouwanttogowithme—AS _FRIENDS—_ unless you wannabemy _date_ -date which is cool too, haha, coollikeyou _wow—_ ”

Oh.

Hi.

Wow.

Feelings sure are a thing.

“Yeah, okay.” Lame. _Lame_. Do better. “Um, I—I’d like. That.” _BETTER_. “It’s a...date?”

Close enough.

Peter’s lips turn _up_. The turnt equivalent of a smile. “A date?”

“A...date.” She grins. Yeah. A date. With Peter. Cool. _Nice_. Awesome.

“ _FINALLY!_ ” Ned fist pumps and hi-fives the imaginary Michael Jordan beside him.

Michelle’s vaguely aware he’s recording this. Whatever.

* * *

Turns out Abe can’t make prom, so Ned gets asked by Cindy. He stays two feet away at _all times_.

“Ned, you know Abe knows I asked you, right?” Michelle overhears Cindy say while she herself’s _slow dancing with Peter-freakin’-Parker_.

(She’s fine, she’s cool, she’s _MJ_.)

“Yup, but he’s my friend and I’m not dancing with his girlfriend,” he replies courteously. Peter throws him a dirty look, because _excuse me, you wanted to take MJ, double-standard keeper!_

Cindy frowns at him. “...We’re not dating.”

“Oh,” Ned says, honest to goodness surprised, “does he know that?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Should we tell him Cindy’s just trying to have a good time?” Peter whispers to Michelle, rising up on his feet to do so. _Cute_.

“Hell no,” she whispers back. “It’s gonna take the entirety of prom to explain that Abe trusts him to not do anything weird.”

(Fifty points to Ned for not doing anything weird, by the way.

Well, other than try to convince Cindy to date Abe because he’s _super cool and funny_ while they group dance to a classic Lady Gaga banger.

 _That_ was _hilarious_.)

* * *

_so did u kiss yet_

_Ned, I swear I’m going to kill you_

_Pete has dibs_

_yes, and I have dibs on Peter_

* * *

_Did you text ned?_

_depends_

_Did he ask if we kissed yet_

_then yea_

_Permission to kiss you?_

What. Michelle stares at her phone.

_what?_

_Window_

* * *

It’s a very nice time to be post-prom and kissing someone you love.

She’s wasn’t sure about the first few lip-locks, but repeated experiments have led her to this very sound conclusion, and by Peter’s dopey-puppy face she assumes he has, too.

* * *

_u guys kissed didnt u_

_no_

_ya ok, and peter shut off his phone to “study”_

_I’m not going to dignify you with a response_

_u just did!!!_

_no I didn’t_

_was it ok? did he mess up? Ill mess him up if he #messedt up_

Peter laughs into her hair, and kisses her cheek. “Ned’s the best.”

“He’s _okay_ ,” she says, but yeah, Peter’s right.

_he didnt. + you the best._

_can i get that notarized_

Peter laughs so hard she has to shove him outside her (ledgeless, second-floor) window in record time because her mom comes up to check on any secret visitors.

* * *

“Mom, c’mon,” she laughs. “You think someone could seriously sneak into my room?”

“Guess not,” Mrs. Jones replies. She shrugs. “Could’ve sworn I heard something.”

“Maybe Dad’s watching something in your room?”

“Could be. Get some sleep, okay?”

Michelle flies into her bed, sprawling dramatically. “Good?”

Her mom shakes her head, laughing. “Good. Goodnight, sweetie.”

“‘Night, mom.”

* * *

“Hey, just FYI,” Michelle says casually on a Friday night, before Peter leaves the couch to grab her and Ned some water.

“Yeah?” Peter says, turning back expecting an extra snack order.

“I love you.” She winks.

“You’ve broken him,” Ned whistles, watching Peter do a double-take and proceed to check if his surrounding are real.

Peter puts his hands on his hips, finishing his inspection with a nod. “Okay, not in a weird time capsule thing.”

“What?” Ned asks.

“Nothing.” He walks back to Michelle and lifts her in a twirling hug. “I love you. Arguably more.”

Michelle wraps her arms around his neck, smiling as she rests her forehead on his. “Don’t debate with me. I’ll win.”

Ned takes out his phone, double checking something.

Then: “Yeah, she’s got you 12-5 on _Star Wars_ alone.”

“I love you significantly less right now, Ned,” Peter frowns.

“That’s fine, I’m MJ’s favorite, anyway.”

“Haha,” Michelle says, “ _True_.”

(Peter brings them one (1) glass to share out of, ‘cause they’re the worst.)

* * *

“Did you Pavlov’s dog Peter or something?” Ned asks at Decathlon practice. Peter’s staying put in his seat, as if immune to everything around him.

“No,” Michelle says. She rethinks that answer. “Maybe. Sort of.”

Ned scrunches up his face. “What was the tre—oh. Okay.”

She nods.

Peter answers every question correctly.

Flash argues with her about fair treatment, because she’s been dating Peter for two weeks and suddenly he hasn’t gotten a single wrong answer in AcaDec? Questionable.

“It’s fair,” Michelle shrugs, rearranging her cards. “He’s just got more incentive now.”

Flash scoffs. “Yeah, like what?”

And, because this is _technically_ after school: she strides on over to Peter’s table, stops, raises a brow pointedly at Flash, and tugs Peter over the desk for a _smooch_.

There’s a collective _OOOOOOH_ and a few scattered snickers, and Mr. Harrington claps his hands in a vain effort to retain order.

* * *

_#goals_

_Ned_

_#goalssssss_

_oh whatever_

* * *

Michelle is tasked with distracting May so Peter and Ned can set up the apartment for her surprise birthday party. She ends up taking her to Chinatown to grab dumplings and then down to the lower edge of Manhattan to see all the overpriced hipster stores because Peter’s bad at planning and it takes three hours more than originally thought.

Somewhere by Astor Place they run out of things to talk about and she blurts out that she loves Peter.

May hugs her. “That’s one of the best birthday gifts I’ve gotten yet.”

“Really?”

May winks. “A mother’s comfort is knowing her child is loved.”

* * *

_SUMMERRRRRR_

_yup_

_SUMMER AND IM HERE TO HUG U BOTH THE ENTIRE TIME_

_Yeah man!!_

_I too am glad_

_u sure mj_

_ya. but. some ppl actually like to sleep_

_Oh dang she used shortcuts_

_shut up P_

_ok ok night guys!! see u allllll week WOOOOOO_

* * *

“Liz. _Please_. Stop. Laughing.”

(She doesn’t.)

“I’m going to hang up now.”

“ _No, you can’t! Wait! I’m sorry, come on. Wait. So he took you to Central Park? And_ proposed _?_ ”

It’s not what it sounds like.

...Okay, it’s a little like what it sounds like, but there were various layers involved. Like the guy who was proposing to his girlfriend on the bridge above him—an important layer. And, yeah, Peter probably should’ve been able to dodge the runaway cyclist who ended up ramming him onto the pavement, but it wasn’t Peter’s fault. It was that stupid birdwatcher’s.

The one who knocked into Proposing Guy just as the cyclist was about to pass. The commotion distracted Peter and caused the cyclist to land a critical hit on the teen hero, and the ring fell, and one thing led to another and—

He managed to sit up in, y’know, that way people do.

When they’re proposing.

“Uh,” she’d said.

“ _UH_ ,” he’d squeaked.

“Motion to shelf this conversation for the indeterminate future?”

Peter had frowned. “Are you saying you don’t want to marry me?”

“No, that’s _very_ much on the table,” she’d said a little on the quick side. “Just _um_ , the dude—” she’d pointed above them, “—he looks like he kinda needs the ring.”

Peter’s ears and face had turned red for pretty much the rest of the day.

Michelle shakes her head, glaring at the phone on the nightstand. “You just want me to repeat the story for your own twisted amusement.”

“ _I’m a freshman-going-on-soph in college and taking summer classes. Let me live a little_.”

(Michelle ends up repeating it at least two more times.)

* * *

“Michelle Jones, right?”

Tony Stark addressing her in front of her entire Physics class is a bit of a surprise.

“Uh, yeah.” She nods at him. “And you’re Tony Stark.”

“Gonna need you to come with me,” he says, already leaving the classroom. “No funny business, just need someone to look over a few drafts.”

Principal Morita gives her a look that says _Well? You heard the man_ , so she grabs her things and walks out the door.

Tony’s designer shoes _clack_ softly on the vinyl floors, and she’s wondering why Peter isn’t with him.

“Your boy’s got a test in Bio, but he’ll be following later,” Tony says, as if reading her mind.

 _Ah. Figures_.

“What do you need me for, exactly?”

Happy waves at her, opening the car door for her entry. She salutes him as she enters the car.

Tony takes off his shades. “The Accords.”

Michelle blinks. “ _The_ Accords?”

He nods. “Peter said you had some ideas?”

 _Well, yeah, I’d prefer to keep my boyfriend out of a human rights-violating jail, so_ …

She squints at him. “A few.”

Tony activates FRIDAY from his watch. “You’ll be credited, and paid for your time. FRIDAY, start recording.”

Oh.

This is really happening.

Dang.

* * *

It’s printed on every paper in the country.

The previously-jailed Avengers are freed.

Peter takes a video of her as she thumbs through a copy of the new legislature. She reaches the page for credits, and her jaw drops.

She hears Peter and Ned _whoop_ ing, and vaguely registers Peter saying, “YES, THAT’S MY GIRLFRIEND! _WOO_!” but nothing pulls her away from the page for almost ten minutes.

Wild.

Her life is freakin’ _wild_.

* * *

The idiot’s in a coma.

 _Again_.

Michelle misses him stealing her clothes and is annoyed that the medical garment he’s wearing actually _fits_.

“Michelle?” a voice says. She turns, and is met with the face of the coolest teen genius she knows of.

“ _Princess Shuri_?”

“You may call me Shuri,” she laughs. “Your boyfriend is stupid, you know that?”

“ _Yup_.”

Shuri cracks a grin. “I told Ned and his auntie already, but he’s going to be fine.” She motions for Michelle to follow her, and proceeds to explain how the circular machine works with the medicine to speed up the healing process. “The bullet grazed his spine, and we can fix those easily. The coma is artificial—we’ll take him out of it tomorrow.”

“Dude. This is _awesome_ ,” is all Michelle can manage to say in lieu of fangirling.

“You don’t seem worried.”

“He always get out fine,” Michelle says, smiling softly. “Sometimes barely, yeah, but he knows I’ll kill him if he dies.”

“Ha!” Shuri laughs, then pulls out a sharpie. “Want to have some fun?”

Oh, Shuri’s skipping the Acquaintance tier. Straight to Tier 2 Prank-Buddy for the princess of Wakanda.

* * *

_hey r u guys still doin the sharpie thing_

_yeah_

_is there a spot on his neck free_

_uhh one sec_

She turns Peter’s lolling head slightly to the side— _wow_ , muscle mass, terrible for her arms—and finds the entire back of his neck devoid of ink.

_yeah_

_dibs, be there soon_

* * *

“Why would you put _Steve > Tony_ where I can’t see it, Ned?”

Ned grins evilly. “So you could cause trouble without even knowing it!”

Peter turns to Michelle. “And really? _Really_?”

“Heh,” she responds, admiring her handiwork. A large scrawl of _If found please return to MJ_ and _May’s #1 Fan_ cover his forehead and right cheek, with doodles of her and May’s faces as guides. Shuri’s Wakandan script is beautiful on his left side, nose, and chin, but she and Ned know it’s a mess of interlocking memes and critiques on King T’Challa’s fashion choices.

Hopefully the royal walks in, just for fun.

* * *

“Third straight Nationals,” Michelle grins, holding the trophy. “ _Hell_ yeah.”

“Can I touch it?” Ned asks.

“No, I’m stealing it and taking it with me to Harvard to use as a door jammer,” she replies.

Ned thinks for a moment. “...Can I touch it when we come over?”

She hums, sitting on the table in the empty-ish Decathlon meeting room. “Eh, why not.”

Peter laughs, taking their pictures. “Ballin’.”

“Never say that again, loser.”

“ _Baaallliiiinnn’_ ,” Peter draws out, an inch from her face.

She kisses him.

“ _PDA_!” Ned stage whispers. “ _That was PDA_!”

“Screw it,” Michelle says, shrugging. “We won Nationals _twice_ while I was captain _and_ I’m credited in the new Accords.” She twines her fingers through her boyfriend’s. “Peter’s still _alive_.” She reaches forward to Ned, ruffling his hair. “ _You’re_ still my friend.” She grins. “I’m _content_.”

(And she is. She really, really is.)

* * *

That’s not how it ends, no.

Not by _far_.

But Michelle Jones spends the rest of her life looking up and seeing a red-black-and-blue-clad ball of light pulling her higher. Freer. She looks down, and she sees an unbreakable smile and a mass of technological genius pushing her out into the world.

She looks ahead and she sees herself, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, and so on, breaking the bad in the world and helping put it back together.

That’s just what happens, you see, when you get the right idiot(s) to keep around.

Progress. Success. Friendship. Love.

 _Life_.

**Author's Note:**

> WHY WAS THIS SO LONG i dont know. im tired. it was such a ride to write though.
> 
> s/o to beautifullights, here's to 'Peter and the Jailbirds', I couldn't have done it without ye
> 
> there's an all-fluff version coming that im terrified is going to be longer than this, so we'll see when that gets finished Whoops
> 
> yell at me here or on tumblr! (doofwrites)


End file.
